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Originally Posted by Blue Tyson
But the 8.99 Bug Jack Barron is 9.28 - which is going the other way.
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Huh. Maybe you're getting a 9.99 price as well, but adjusted downwards to Australian currency. That would seem about proportionate with 2.99 USD=2.78 AUS=92% of which 9.28 is 92% of 9.99.
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Originally Posted by Blue Tyson
Open Road I am pretty sure I've mentally dismissed as not much of interest and way too expensive, so never knew they had stuff as generically fantasy like Hambly?
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Apparently their CEO is ex-Random House or something and brought a list of the good authors to poach. They started out doing those literary fiction former "bestsellers" but now they've got Patricia C. Wrede and other genre people as well.
It's probably just as well. At least their books are discountable.
When Random House went Agency in Canada, not only did they remove the possibility of coupons and the regular discounts, but they also inflated some of the Canadian prices by an extra $2 off the existing base pre-discount list. I saw some of Hambly's mystery novels go from $6.99 suggested before discounts (at which point they'd been $5.59 or so at the standard Kobo pre-coupon price) to $8.99 in single day. I'd been slowly supplementing my hardcovers with the e-book editions when the good coupons came up, but no more of that now.
I can spend that money getting her newest in the series out from Severn House who've picked her up, now that Random House has dumped her from their frontlist.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Blue Tyson
Only in Australia, as far as I am aware. No idea how that makes sense given there is zero paper market to 'protect' for those - unless they are just trying to do that in general. Which is also $%^%!*#& stupid, of course as the Kindle Select cheap book goldmine just means reading and cash goes there or small presses instead. $14 for E. C. Tubb or D. G. Compton or whoever ebooks is clearly delusional.
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I think they are trying to do that across the board, considering the asking prices of much older semi-obscure midlist backlist at new paperback-equivalent print prices for typo-riddled e-editions. To give a fun example, Barbara Hambly's Icefalcon's Quest, 5th in her increasingly inaccurately named Darwath Trilogy* came out in hardcover in the late 90s with a corresponding mass market paperback which would have cost some $8 or 9 CAD around that time.
How much are Random House asking for the e-book edition? $21 CAD. No, that is not a typo. Apparently they're trying to tie it to some form of hypothetical trade paperback reprint price.
But to be fair I should point out that the Hambly books I have from them have generally had very nice typo-free editions which incorporated the original artwork for the chapter headers and the maps and good formatting. Though not $21 CAD worth of good formatting.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Blue Tyson
As far as Tor.com goes - I would have done that too, actually. They do still have free html ones which I am sure calibre or instapaper or something will snag for you in a few seconds if you fancy one converted as you are probably aware.
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I'm lazy and I don't even bother reading the stories on the site any more. If they really want to put up barriers in my convenience in reading and spreading the word around what's essentially glorified promo material for their site and associated sales, I just don't care enough to bother jumping the hurdles and therefore I end up not reading their promo material or looking at the related stuff which might make them associated sales, much less telling other people about stuff I found there.
Which is probably mildly sad, because I did end up buying Charles Stross' Laundry series based upon the Tor.com tie-in stories back when they were still downloadable and maybe I'm missing out on a bunch of great stuff. But I just don't care anymore.
* Many things should take re-naming cues from Douglas Adams' marketing team.